Busy: Out to get Rory
by indigo-chica
Summary: Rape is something she doesn't talk about, but Rory has to face her past and correct all the wrong doings. Tristan is at her side. Will she succeed? 7th Chapter UP.. finally!
1. The Club

Disclaimer: I don't really own any TV series. As soon as I do though, I'll catch ya up on it. 

Chapter One: The Club

Rory sighed. Another one of those 'player-type-guys' was checking her out. So she deserved it she guess. Maybe it was what she was wearing, a two piece leather outfit, showing a lot of skin. She spun around on her barstool and eyed the guy that was checking her out. He had a nice tan, and his shirt showed that he was muscled. His blond hair seemed to have a life of its own though, and she must admit that he scored extremely high on the how-hot-a-guy-is Gilmore scale. She winked at him, and smiled, as he looked startled. She started walking seductively towards him, and sat on his lap. 

"So how about it, your place or mine?" she whispered into his ear. 

"I don't know, which is closer?" the guy whispered back. "Mine's in Hartford." 

"Well then, it's yours." Rory whispered back, trailing kisses down his neck. 

The couple then walked out of the club, holding hands. The guy helped her into his car, which happened to be a very updated BMW model. They arrived at his apartment a few minutes later. Walking up into his place, she observed that he must have a lot of money, as this was a very private area. Hell, this place even had a guard posted at every gate. He opened the door to his apartment and led her to his bedroom. 

"Do you want a drink?" he asked. 

"Hmm," Rory spoke. "You're different. Most guys just want to rush straight on to the… good parts."

The guy smiled. "I'm not like most guys." 

"Yeah I can see that. You're a lot cuter."

"I am not cute," the guy protested. "I'm hot."

"So, how big is your..." Rory paused. "Ego?"

"The size of Texas." 

Rory laughed, and the sound of it filled up the room. "Nice."

The guy handed her a drink. Rory took a sip of it. Coca-Cola. 

"You don't want me drunk?" she asked, disbelievingly. 

"Of course not. It's way better when you actually know what you're doing." 

"Um hmm. Sure." Rory replied. "So what are you doing now?"

"Oh, I'm studying law. In my second year at it too." The guy replied.

"Law? Tough cookie to crack. Me, I'm doing psychology." Rory said.

The guy gave her a 100-watt smile. "Psychology?" 

"What? Don't I seem like a psychological type of person?" Rory defended.

"Sure you do." The guy replied. He paused for a while. "When pigs fly."

"Heyyyy. What does that mean?" Rory asked, feeling her anger rise.

"Nothing."

"For your information, I'm studying in Harvard." Rory spoke. "But I'm not majoring in psychology. I'm actually majoring in… journalism." 

"And the truth comes out." The guy laughed. "Harvard's posh, but I didn't know that they let people like you in."

Rory stood up. "That is way out of line. I got in on my own accord. I'm smart, and I know that I can do whatever I want to do." 

"Sorry. Didn't mean to say that. It just came out. I'm at Yale." The guy said. 

Rory sat down, starting to relax. "Smart place as well. So what did you do to get in? Did your daddy-o have to bribe someone?" Rory prodded. 

The guy smiled. "Actually- no. I got a scholarship." 

They stopped conversing, and Rory eyed the huge bed that was in the middle of the bedroom. 

"Are we going to use that?" she asked. 

"Yeah. Enough talk." The guy said. 

Rory smiled, and made her way to the bed. 

6.30 the next morning

Rory opened her eyes, and glanced at the clock. 6.30. Damn she was late for her class. She sat up and began dressing herself. She looked at the guy who had shared his bed with her and smiled. She shook him gently. 

"I have to go. Can I borrow your car for a while? I left mine at the club." She said.

The guy opened squinted up at her, and closed his eyes hurriedly at the brightness.

"Sure. I don't have any classes today. Just return it to me. The keys are on the table." He then went back to his dream world. 

Rory drove to her apartment, hurried picking up the books that she needed and then she went to Harvard. She was just on time for her class. Rory was disturbed all the way through class, thinking about the guy that she had just spent the night with. He seemed nice enough, but he reminded her of someone, so long ago. Someone that had angered her, yet made her feel loved at the same time. She couldn't remember his name. As soon as class was over, she made her way to her favourite café: Starbucks. She searched in her bag for her wallet, but it was nowhere to be found. Only then did she realise that she had left it in the guy's apartment. 

10.00, the same morning. 

Tristan got out of bed, and glanced at his clock. 10.00. There was a lady's wallet on the small bedside table. He snatched it. He still hadn't found out the name of the girl that he had spent the night with. He had enjoyed her company. She had reminded him of someone. Tristan opened her wallet and took out her Identification Card. He read the name on it: Rory Gilmore. He reread it again, just to make sure. And then, he groaned aloud and fell back onto his bed. No wonder he felt the sparks that jumped between them. They had connected in a way that he had only connected with one other person, and that was his grandfather. The crush that he felt for Rory Gilmore, the one he had buried long before and ignored, had just resurfaced. 

A/N: Should I continue with this? I wouldn't know, it's my first fic. 


	2. You're not you

Disclaimer: Same as always. Don't own anything… yet. 

A/N: Oh the sleeping-together-thing-but-I-don't-know-your-name means that they expected it to be a one-night-stand.

Chapter 2: You're not you

Rory turned around, out of Starbucks, and headed straight for Tristan's apartment. The car screeched to a halt right outside the front gate. The guard, seeing that she did not live here, asked for which apartment she tended to visit. Rory paused, unsure of what to say. She had never gotten the name of the guy. She looked at the car.

"Oh, I'm just returning this baby to its owner." She said, pointing to the BMW. 

The guard laughed. "You must mean Tristan." 

Rory stopped whatever she was doing and stared at the man. "His name is Tristan?" She questioned. Rory had only known one Tristan. And that was…

"Yeah. Tristan Dugrey." 

Rory opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. The only thought that ran around her mind hit her at full speed. She had spent the night at Tristan's. The same guy, who had tormented her every living second at Chilton, then was later sent to Military School. Although she couldn't understand why she had changed so much then, she understood now. It was because Tristan had left her. 

Ever since then, she had been on an emotional roller coaster, alternating between Good Rory and Bad Rory. Good Rory was the girl that she was before she changed into Bad Rory. [I.e. Reading books during lunch, talking to no one during Chilton hours]. Bad Rory is the girl that she can be. [Flirting with every capable male in the vicinity, dressed to kill, bad-ass humour and wit, doing all this, and not losing the brain that good Rory has.] 

The guard smiled nicely at her, and told her that Tristan was in apartment 21. Rory gulped, got in the car that belonged to Tristan, and drove away trying to find Tristan's apartment. She parked the car and walked into the 20-floors [and above] building. She paused outside Tristan's door, debating whether or not she should ring the doorbell. She could just drop it on the Welcome rug. She thought about it a little more, and then decided that leaving it on the rug would be the coward's way out, and Rory Gilmore was anything but a coward. As her finger zoned in to the doorbell, she began getting second thoughts, or was it third thoughts? However, before she could decide which number of thoughts it was, the doorbell echoed through the apartment, leaving Rory Gilmore with mouth hanging open at the indecency of it all.

'I didn't even have the chance to think about it all,' thought Rory, feeling extremely frustrated. 'What was she going to do when Tristan opens the door, and…

The door opened, leaving a very-cleaned-up-looking Tristan. He stared at her for a few moments, trying to decide what to do, and cursed the fact that he hadn't asked who was at the door. He smirked, and decided to leave things to fate. He stepped aside, letting her enter into his posh apartment once again. 

"Rory," he stated.

"Tristan," she answered back, in the same monotone. 

He spread out his arms and hugged her. To his surprise, she hugged back. 

"I've missed you," he told her, as they stepped back from each other.

At these words, Rory's face lit up like a lightbulb.

"I haven't seen you in ages," said Rory, trying to lighten up the conversation. 

Tristan led them to his kitchen. 

"Do you want anything to drink?" he inquired.

Rory laughed. "This sounds too much like last night."

"Rory, you've changed so much. The Rory that I knew in Chilton would never have done something like… what we did last night," said Tristan, peering into her eyes. 

Rory fell silent at this, and Tristan was afraid that he had gone too far. 

"I've changed. I'm not the same Rory that you thought you knew back then. But then again, you have changed too," Rory spoke and closed her eyes as she felt the easy tears threaten to spill. 

Tristan took all of this in, and then some. 

"I know you Rory. Back then, in Chilton, I mean. I know your favourite colour is pastal blue, it matches the shade of your eyes. I know that your favourite author is J.K. Rowling, although you will never admit it to the public, I know that you and your mother are best friends, I know that you love coffee almost as much as you love your life, and I know that although you complain and whine about living in Stars Hollow, you love it all the same." 

Rory opened her mouth, and yet again no sound came out. After a moment of tense silence, she spoke again. 

"Did I come with a Rory manual or something?" she smirked. 

Tristan laughed, relieved to feel the tension fade away. "Now that is something that the Rory I know and learned to tolerate, would say."

Rory smiled. "You would tolerate me in any way you found me. Drunken Rory, Flirtatious Rory, Studious Rory…"

Tristan smirked. "Mm hmm, that is one of my few weak points." 

"How about a weak point out of many other weak points," quipped Rory.

"Mary, Mary. What did I tell you? I only have a few weak points, which is more that what I can say for you."

Rory fell silent at this. She thought about what he had just called her: Mary. 

"Do you still that I'm a Mary?" asked Rory, silently praying with the Gods for him to say yes.

"Rory, even though you're more like a Magdalene now…." Tristan paused and then winced at the pain he felt from her slight punch. "I still think that you're my Mary." 


	3. Rory's baby

Disclaimer: Same as always. Don't own 

Chapter Three: Rory's Baby

They talked for about eight hours, and finally they decided to watch a movie. Rory fell asleep on Tristan's shoulder and he smiled, feeling her relax against him. Rory unconsciously snuggled into his arms. Tristan smirked at this cute gesture that his Mary had just done and carried her into his bedroom. She needed rest. Tristan left his bedroom, leaving Rory on his huge King sized bed, and walked into his living room. There, he slept on his couch.

7.00 am

Rory opened her eyes. 7.00 am. Her class started at 11.00. She started to close her eyes again, but then she realised that she was in an unfamiliar territory. She jumped immediately out of bed and walked out of the posh bedroom that she was in, only to discover that she had just walked in on Tristan sleeping on the couch. Not only that, but he was topless. That was enough to make Rory want to drool. He was sprawled on his front and his blond hair was mussed. 

'Just the way I like it,' thought Rory. 

She walked over to him and then rubbed her hands into his air. Tristan groaned aloud and rolled over, thus forcing Rory to sit down on him. Tristan opened his eyes at the weight that had landed on his chest and laughed at the horrified expression on Rory's face. 

"Relax, Mary. Girls throw themselves at me all the time." Tristan smiled. 

Rory's face immediately clouded over and she stepped off him. "The ego comes out again, Tris." 

"Sorry Mary." Tristan replied, and he stood up. "What time is it anyway?"

"7.00," replied Rory.

"So early," moaned Tristan. "I was in the middle of a really good dream too."

Rory smirked. "May I guess who was in it? Was it one of those Pornstar girls, grinding themselves against you?" 

Tristan smirked. "Only if you've suddenly gone all Pornstar on me," mumbled Tristan, as he made his way into the toilet. He stopped as he saw Rory run past him. 

"I've got first dibs on the shower," shouted Rory.

Tristan smiled. "I thought you said that you don't do athletic."

"I don't," Rory replied. "I'm just resorting to drastic measures. I know that you'll spend at least half an hour in there and I can't wait that long. I've got things to do and places to go."

"Mary, you wound me. Here I am, thinking that you were just hurrying to get yourself all made up, and then throw yourself at me."

"Tris, sorry to disappoint. I don't do throwing myself at you," Rory shouted, turning the shower on and letting the cold water refresh her. 

"What was that the other night then?" asked Tristan. 

"That was Evil me." 

"Evil-Mary? I could get used to that." Tristan smiled, and Rory could practically hear the smirk in his voice. 

"Don't get used to it, Tris. Hey, can you drive me off to my place? I gotta get my books, I got class at 11. I don't want to go another day without driving on my baby either." Rory replied. 

"Your baby, Mary?" 

"Oh, yeah. My black Ninja model 55600. Revved up so high it can go as fast as your little BMW back there." 

"This I gotta see." 

8.30 am (in Tristan's BMW, on the way to Rory's apartment)

"So, Mary, where's your place?" asked Tristan. 

"Streetlore Avenue Apartments," muttered Rory. 

Tristan smiled. "That's only a few minutes drive from here, Mary. Another posh place."

Rory muttered," That's because my grandparents have something to do with it."

"The social pressure in Hartford has gathered up so much that it can make a volcano burst."

8.35 am 

Rory checked her mailbox, gathering the letters that resided in there. There was a notice on her door. 

' Miss Lorelai Gilmore, 

Your monthly renting fee of this apartment has been long overdue. Kindly make payments at the front office.'

Rory swore. The last thing that she needed was another notice. Then, she remembered. She had just spent the rental money for her books. 

"Mary, Mary. What have you done with the money?" drawled Tristan, creeping up behind her. 

Rory turned around, and fumbled nervously with her thumbs.

"Tristan, I don't have it. I spent it on some books," she confided. 

Tristan laughed. "Mary, you don't have to worry about that. You can just move in with me. I've got lots of space, and besides, I'd love the company. My apartment is about 10 minutes drive from both Harvard and Yale." 

Rory looked up at him in shock. Did he just say what she thought he did? 

"I'm sorry. Care to repeat what you just said?" Rory asked.

"Move in with me," Tristan repeated. 

Rory huffed. "Well, it's not that easy Mister. I'd have to move out of this nice apartment of mine into yours, and not to mention the amount of boxes it will take to pack up all my stuff. What will I say to Mum and grandma? Grandpa?"

"Just say that a friend of yours kindly asked you to move in with him because he felt lonely and thought that he would be a good influence on you."

"Stop flattering yourself, Tris. They'll just ask me if I'm sleeping with you."

Tristan laughed. "Sorry to say, Mary. But you already have slept with me."

Rory gave him an evil glare. "If you ever talk about what happened that night with any of my relatives, I will personally make sure that the tool you need to make children be removed. I assume that you do want children?" 

"Sure Mary. We be friends now. I get it," said Tristan, a little intimidated by the words that had just come out of her mouth. He continued. "Now, tell me, where is that little baby of yours?"

The next week, when Rory has moved into Tristan's apartment

"Rory," yelled Tristan. He knocked on the bathroom door, but got no answer. He checked the doorknob, and to his surprise, it wasn't locked. He opened it, and walked in. His eyes opened in surprise at what he saw. Rory was in the tub, making out (heavily) with some guy [ his name is Mark ]. 

Rory gasped as she heard the door open. Tristan only called her Rory when he had something important to tell her, or when he was mad at her. She wrenched herself away from the lips of the guy she was interlocked with, and glanced at the now open door. 

"Tristan." She stated. 

"Rory." Tristan spoke. "I need to talk to you – now." 

Rory smiled indulgently at him. "Sure Tris. Be out in a while." Rory said goodbye to Mark. [A/N: Don't worry, he has a big part. Coming right up, probably in the next part.]

Tristan turned around, and walked out of his bathroom. 

Rory crept up behind Tristan, and hugged him. 

"What's up Tris?" she asked casually. 

"Mary. You have to stop bringing up guys into my..." he paused. "Our apartment. Get out of your old habits, Mary. They're not good for you."

Rory stole a glance at him. "Since when did you care so much about my well-being?" 

Tristan smiled at her, a smile that showed tolerance. "Since we met, Mary."

TBC

A/N: I'm not exactly sure where I'm goin with this, so any comments, drop a line. Mail me. :D Gracias for all the reviews. Later, chickadees. 


	4. Tanya and Rory's (mis)adventure

That night

Rory made herself comfortable in her room. She had decorated it and furnished it to suit her needs. She studied for a few hours and then tried to sleep. It was already 2 am. Tristan was still out, probably crusading around with some girl. She didn't understand the feeling that overcame her. Was she jeolous? Of Tristan out with some other girl? No, she can't be. Tristan is just a friend. Besides, she has Mark. 

Rory fell into an uneasy sleep, tossing and turning, trying to rid herself of the jeolous thoughts that had somehow gathered in her mind. Suddenly, she screamed. 

Tristan had just gotten home from his visit to the doctors. He had to have a checkup every few months, just to make sure that his physique was ok. As soon as he stepped through the doorway, he heard a piercing scream that cut throw the night. It was Rory. 

He ran into her bedroom, relieved to find that it wasn't locked. What he saw wrenched his heart. Rory was having a nightmare, and she was screaming out something. He didn't wait to make it out, as he ran over to Rory's side and started making soothing noises to calm her down.

"Sshh, Mary. It's ok. I'm just Tristan." Comforted Tristan. 

Tristan watched, appalled as Rory thrashed around the bed some more, all the while struggling vainly to rid herself out of his embrace. Suddenly, she stopped thrashing about, and lay still. This creeped Tristan out even more, and he shook her, trying to get her out of her nightmare, or trance. 

Rory woke up. Her forehead was damp, full of small sweat beads. She could hear Tristan's voice, but still she couldn't get the thoughts out of her head. Thoughts of that night, many moons ago. The night when she… 

"Rory are you ok?" asked Tristan. "Can you explain to me what just happened? You seem to be having a nightmare, and your screams could certainly wake up the dead."

Rory stood up. "I'm fine, Tris. It's ok. It was just a bad dream."

"Mary, if every time I had a bad dream, and I shout the angels off their clouds, it still wouldn't compare to your bad dream. What was it about?"

At this point, Rory had shut herself in, and she didn't allow anyone to come in. Apart from her best bud, Tanya. Tanya was, in her own case, a very nice girl. Although the fact that she was African- American, and many racial issues arose from that single issue. 

"Tris, can you please call Tanya for me? I need some girl-to-girl talk. Her phone number is in my diary."

"Sure, Mary. Sit tight and I'll be right back. You do know that it's 3 am. Do you think she'll mind that you want her to come over?" Tristan spoke up.

"No, she won't mind."

"Ok then, I'll be back."

"I know, you just said so."

Tristan smile at her wit, even though it was too damn early to make out anything yet. He walked out and called Tanya. She was a little bit pissed off, but when she heard that Rory had a bad dream, she said that she would be right over. Tristan waited in the sitting room for the doorbell. As soon as he heard it, he ran to open the door. 

"Tanya." Tristan stated.

"And who are you? As far as I know, Rory's got no homee's." Tanya spoke. 

"I'm Tristan." He said, smiling. 

"Keep on smiling boy, and I'm sure you'll attract some chicks. Now where's my home girl?" asked Tanya. 

"She's in the second room on the right. The one with the blue walls." Tristan explained. 

"Right-o. Be right back, Tristan." 

Tanya walked into the said room and sat down, having a girl – to – girl – talk with her best bud. 

"Rory, honey. I didn't know you've been having dreams like these again. How bad was it this time?" asked Tanya, giving Rory a hug. 

Rory gave a weary smile. "Not as bad as some that I've had. I'll be fine now. Thanks for coming Tanya. I'll just go right back to sleep." 

"I'll be right in the living room. Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite." Tanya whispered, giving Rory a kiss on the forehead as she tucked her in. 

Tanya walked out into the living room, where Tristan was sitting on the couch.

"Tristan," she said. "How long have you known Rory for?" 

Tristan looked up at the girl. "About 5 years now, although we've just caught up." 

Tanya thought about it. "No wonder. I'm willing to bet anything that you don't know about her adventure?"

Tristan glanced up. "What adventure?"

Tanya bit her lip, and sat down next to Tristan. "I'm not too sure if Rory would want you to know about this, so for now, this is between us. Is that alright?"

Tristan nodded an affirmative. 

"Okay. My home girl Rory was raped."

Tristan's mouth hung open as he tried to figure out the information. "What?" 

"That's right. You remember her friend, Lane? Well, Rory was over to her birthday party one day and then, on the way there, right in the middle of Hartford, some guy picked her up and abused her. Little Rory, being the girl that she is hasn't told anyone about this. I'm not even sure if her mum knows, and you know how close they are."

Tristan closed his eyes. "How do you know about this?"

"I was the girl that found her stumbling along the road like a drunken sailor. I took her in and calmed her down. Since then, she told me all about it. She hasn't talked to Lane since then, and… I don't think she's been herself since then."

"She's changed a lot. This doesn't explain why she's crusading around, picking guys up." Tristan said, voicing the thoughts that ran through his mind.

"Oh. My home girl's been trying to find the guy that did this to her. I think she said something about him having a huge scar on his chest." Tanya looked at him, forcing him to look into her eyes. "I don't want you to tell her anything about what I've just told you about. The only person that she feels comfortable about discussing this is with me. I can tell that you and her are close by the way that she relies on you so much. That don't mean that I won't kick your ass if you hurt her though."

Tristan laughed nervously. "Don't worry, I won't dream about hurting Mary again."

"Mary? You are the guy who's been calling her Mary all the while?" Tanya asked, practically demanding an answer out of him.

Tristan looked scared by the sudden threat in her voice. "Yeah."

Tanya smiled at the nervousness in his voice. "She cares about you a lot, Bible Boy."

Tristan's heartbeat slowed down a fraction, but then sped up again at the meaning behind the words. "I care about her too."

Tanya nodded, and stood up. "I gotta go back to my home turf. Catch y'all later."

"Bye, Tanya." Tristan said. He led her out of the apartment, and then went to his own room for some rest. 'No wonder Mary's been so different,' thought Tristan. 


	5. authors note help!

Personally from me(the author) : I'm sorry people, I just don't know how to make this story work. I've tried to write down all the possible scenarios, but the words don't seem to flow… can someone help me out? I really hate it when ppl don't continue with their story, and now I'm just one of them. Jeez. So please … tell me if u have any ideas on how to work this out? 

Mail me at indigo_chica01@hotmail.com. or, just review. Anything . 

apesadumbrado 

spiacente 

(sorry) 


	6. Rory spills the beans

****

Author's note: Thanks y'all for the encouraging comments you've written. I'd like to thank Lunaticbabe, Alex, and Samantha for their advice concerning the following chapters. God bless.

The next morning

"Mary, wake up. It's already 1o'clock," said a very tired Tristan. He obviously did not have much sleep the night before and on a parole trip around the apartment, found a still sleeping Rory. 'She probably has some plans, I think she overslept', thought Tristan. He shook her, trying to wake her from the dreamless sleep. 

Rory sat up, blinking, and rubbing her eyes. She looked at the clock, opened her mouth, and screamed. "Tristan! This is all your fault! It's Monday isn't it? Look what time it is! Now, I've missed my history and English lit lecture. Do you know what will happen to me? I'll get kicked out of Harvard! No, even worse than that. I'll get sent to jail! If I get sent to jail, my grandparents will disown me," she shouted. Each exclamation was followed with a blaming poke of her finger. Tristan smiled at her. 

"Can you please stop smiling? What are you so happy about?" asked a calmer Rory. 

"Nothing," replied Tristan. His smile grew larger. She had evidently forgotten all about her tirade the night before, and how much of her past had been revealed to Tristan by Tanya.

"ARGGGHHH! I don't get it! Here I am, almost pulling my hair out of it's ends and there you are, cool as a cucumber. Stop smiling!" shouted Rory. She jumped out of bed, and ran to the bathroom. Tristan sat in the armchair, and watched her as she ran around like a headless chicken. Rory then ran out of the bathroom. 

"What's wrong, Mary?" asked Tristan. 

"I forgot my clothes," Rory said. She ran to her closet, and started sifting through it to find appropriate clothes. 

"Mary, Mary. Look at me, I'm in a state of bliss," said Tristan. 

Rory stopped what she was doing and turned around. She took a look at him and burst out laughing. "I'm sure you love to be covered in women's lingerie, Tris."

Tristan laughed, and pointed at her. "And I get a show from you at the same time."

Rory glanced about confused, and then took a look at herself. She was only wearing a bra and undies. She smiled at him, and gave a bow. Tristan clapped for her, and she returned to the bathroom carrying a handful of clothes. 

After Rory finished taking a shower, she stepped out (fully clothed) and saw that Tristan was in the same chair. 

"Tris, don't you have anything better to do than sit there waiting for a lap dance?" asked Rory. Obviously she was in a better mood. Tristan let that comment slide.

"Rory, have you forgotten? It's mid terms for me," said Tristan. 

Rory gave him a shocked look and ran to her calendar. She then gave another squeal and turned around to hug Tristan. Since he was sitting down in the armchair, it was very difficult for her to maneuver into a hug, so she ended up sitting on his lap. She smiled up at him.

"It's mid terms for me as well! Oh, this is sooo great!" said Rory. She jumped up and started looking through her bookshelf. 

"Mary, you haven't had breakfast… or lunch, yet. Let's go to Starbucks. I'll treat you," bribed Tristan. Without waiting for an answer, he dragged her out of their apartment and into his car. 

At Starbucks, 
    
    "Can we have 3 large coffees, 2 muffins and a roll, please," said Rory. Tristan looked at her. "Ok, you can order now, Tristan."
    Tristan laughed, and shook his head at the confused waitress. "I'll just have 1 medium coffee."
    When the waitress went away, Tristan smiled at Rory. "I have no idea how you can eat that much and still stay so trim. You don't even go to the gym or anything."
    A frightened look overtook Rory's features. "The gym? Are you planning my death? I run so slow that even a tortoise can overtake me. I think, anyway," she commented.
    Tristan gave a loud guffaw. "Right, Mary. I guess you won't be following me to the gym then."
    "You got that right, DuGrey."
    After their brunch, Rory was contemplating where she should venture for the 2 week long holidays. On the drive back to their apartment, Tristan asked Rory on the bad dream she had last night.
    "So, Mary, what happened last night?" asked Tristan. He took his eyes of the road for a minute, just in time to see the confusion on her face.
    "Nothing. I just had a nightmare. That's it. Nothing more," mumbled Rory. She then looked around the car, feeling uncomfortable. She wasn't sure what to tell Tristan, that was, if she should tell him anything at all.
    "Why so quiet all of a sudden?" inquired Tristan.
    "Just thinking," replied Rory.
    "Uh-huh," said Tristan. He pulled in to his parking space, and they walked up to their apartment.
    That night, after dinner
    
    As they were clearing up the plates from the Chinese food they had picked up, Rory set her mouth to motion and argued with her mind that Tristan had the right to know about what happened to her in the past.
    "Tris, I need to tell you something," she started. Tristan smiled at her affectionate nickname for him. From her serious tone, he could tell that she had a serious issue on her mind. A very serious issue.
    "Yeah?"
    "I think we better sit down," she said, and pulled him to her bedroom. They sat on the bed, face to face.
    She continued, "Two years ago, when I was walking to Lane's party, a guy picked me up. He took me to this dark alley and raped me." Pausing slightly, Rory closed her eyes. She felt Tristan clutching her hands in support. "I didn't turn up and Lane's party that night. I wandered about, and met Tanya. She made me swallow the morning-after pill, and I stayed at her house that night. Mom was worried about me. I didn't tell her or Lane what happened. In a way, I blamed Lane for it."
    At this point, Rory broke down. She had never spoken the last sentence out loud, nor did she feel the need to admit to herself why she had never spoken to Lane after that. Now, after letting all her disconcerting thoughts out in the open, she ran to the bathroom, sat on the toilet seat and cried.
    Tristan ran after her, knocking on the door but to no avail. Rory would not open the door. Finally after about three hours of crying her heart out, she opened the door to find Tristan leaning against the wall. His head was down and he seemed to be mulling over something.
    "Tris…" she said.
    Tristan looked up into Rory's eyes, and jumped up to hug her.
    "I'm so sorry about what happened, Mary. I know for a fact that you did not deserve it," Tristan said soothingly. He led her to her bedroom, and tucked her in. "Get some rest."
    "Tris… you know something? Lane's getting married," said Rory. Her eyes felt heavy; she was extremely tired.
    Tristan nodded. " I know, I'm Henry's best man."
    "Oh? I didn't know you guys were that close. I think I should go to her wedding. I feel like I owe it to her. Can I come along with you, please?" asked Rory.
    "Sure, Mary. We'll leave tomorrow," said Tristan. Rory shut her eyes, and fell into a blissfully peaceful sleep. 


	7. Back in Stars Hollow

On the car drive to Stars Hollow

"How can you listen to this crap?" asked Rory as Justin Timberlake's 'Like I love you' flowed out of the car stereo. 

"It's not crap, Ror," muttered Tristan.

"Yes it is, it's just a guy going on about how much girls fawn over him," said Rory. She paused for a while. "Actually, now that I think about it, he sounds just like you. Y'know one of those player type guys that have everything they want in their life."

Tristan looked away. "Not everything. They're missing something that they desperately want and need, so to make up for that, they take all and give nothing in return. The world owes them." 

He stopped the car as a red light came on, and took out the CD. Silence overcame the car. Rory glanced at him surprised at the sudden change in attitude and picked out a different topic.

"I wonder how Lane will look like," she mused aloud.

Tristan smiled. "She'll look damn pretty, I bet she'll be glowing. It's going to be the most important day of her life." 

Rory nodded. "I haven't seen her in ages. I hope she still remembers me. I haven't talked to her since…"

"It's ok, Rory. We'll not delve into that now. But you have to know that sometime soon, you'll have to tell her and your mum about… that night. It just wouldn't be right for you to leave out an important detail about your life to your most closest friends." Tristan glanced at Rory, as a thoughtful look came over her face. 

"I know." 

An hour later

Tristan finally rolled the car to a complete halt in Rory's old driveway. He looked at the passenger seat and discovered that his angel was still asleep. He smiled and shook her to wake up. She stirred, but did nothing more than that. Tristan leant close to her ear, and whispered that they have arrived to Stars Hollow. No reaction. 

Leaving no other option to him, he got out of the car and got to the passenger side of the car. He carried Rory in his arms, making sure that she was safe. He walked casually to the door, as if Rory's weight was nothing to him. It probably wasn't. Once he reached to the door, he discovered that he couldn't open the door without at least the possibility of Rory falling out of his arms. 

Then, suddenly the door opened and Lorelai appeared. Tristan looked at her in shock, as if she had just appeared out of thin air.

"What are you doing, carrying my beloved daughter?" asked Lorelai, a confused look on her face.

Tristan blushed. "She was sleeping and I didn't know how to wake her up. So, I carried her as it'll probably be more comfortable for her and make it easier for me."

Lorelai nodded, but there was still a questioning glint in her eye. "Why is Rory with you in the first place? Who are you, young man? Do I know you? I might know you actually, because I've probably seen you when you were small and still an ugly baby but now that you've changed into a handsome young thing, you'll probably look different." She paused. "I'm blabbering, aren't I? Never mind, come in and you can put Rory in her bed. I'll show you where her room is."

She let Tristan walk in, and showed him where Rory's room was. She noticed the gentle way that he placed Rory in her bed and the loving kiss on the forehead afterwards. Seeing him tuck her daughter in that way made her realise how close Tristan is in a way that she once was. 

"Young man, let's go out. I think we need to talk," said Lorelai, and she led Tristan out of Rory's room, shutting the door quietly but firmly. 

They sat on the couch, and contemplated each other first. Lorelai was the first to open her mouth.

"What's your name, young man?" she asked. 

"Tristan, ma'am. Tristan DuGrey," he replied. 

"Stop the ma'am business. You make it sound like I'm 74 and on the way to my deathbed. I assure you that I am nowhere near that so just call me Lorelai. If you don't… then it will be you who will die a slow and painful death." 

"Yes, ma… Lorelai."

"Ok, so tell me why my daughter is with the infamous Bible Boy, whom 5 years ago would have sent her into a nasty state of rashes."

"We met a while ago and reconciled our differences, we're pretty close now."

"I see. No, actually I don't see. What are you doing here? How do you know where Rory lives?" 

"Remember when we did that Romeo and Juliet play? Well, when we came here, Rory told me where her house was in case of an emergency." 

"Uh-huh. Rite. You have a great memory by the way."

Tristan smiled at the off-hand compliment.

"So how did you meet my gorgeous daughter, oh Satan's spawn?"

"Satan's spawn? C'mon now, I thought that Bible boy was bad enough, but now I know that this is just horrendous. I mean, I knew I was horrible when younger, but aren't you going a wee bit too far?"

"No, you deserve it," grinned Lorelai. She liked Tristan already. 

"Well," Tristan paused. How was he supposed to tell her that he met her daughter in a club, picked her up, took her to his apartment and had sex with her? He didn't. "We have mutual friends, so we caught up with the past and now we're as shiny as a new penny."

"Mm-hmm. So, how close are you two anyway?"

"We're pretty close. We live together, so I know all those annoying little quirks that go along with Rory's personality."

As soon as Lorelai heard the part of Rory and Tristan living together, her mouth fell open. She was shocked.

"You live together?" she asked, danger written all over her voice… 


	8. Lorelai, queen of Stars Hollow

****

Thank you for everyone who's reviewed… =) ahhh I just realised the big boo boo I made! I'm so sorry people for posting the wrong chapter.. pls forgive me. =D

Chapter 7

Tristan looked at Lorelai in surprise. She didn't know that they're living together? Rory didn't tell her? Oh my god…

"Umm, it's a recent thing," began Tristan, stuttering a little. "Rory sort of spent her rent money on books and she was kindly kicked out of her apartment."

Lorelai glared at him. "Rory is responsible. She would never do that. Besides how can you kindly get kicked out?"

Tristan winced. Was she ever going to get a big shock…? "Umm. Yeah I know that. But it happened." 

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't believe you. Don't tell me you're just making this up to send me into a premature heart attack. You're not that evil are you, Bible Boy?"

"Lorelai, I'm telling the truth," pleaded Tristan. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rory sleepily making her way into the living room. 

"Uh huh. And I'm the queen of Stars Hollow." 

Rory sleepily rubbed her eyes at the unusual sight of Tristan and Lorelai talking intensely. She's never seen them like this. She's never seen them talk. Period. 

"Hi mum, Tris," said Rory. 

"Hi Rory," muttered Tristan. He couldn't look at her. How would she react if she knew that he told Lorelai they are now living together? 

"Why do I feel like I walked in at the wrong time?" muttered Rory. She eyed her mum curiously. 

"Because, honey, I just found out something interesting," said Lorelai.

"Oh really? What?" 

"You're living with Bible Boy over here." 

Rory stopped in her steps. 

"And here I am wondering why my darling daughter didn't tell me this important little tidbit…"

Rory nodded. She paused for a while, and considered what to tell her mother. "Well, considering the fact that I had spent all my rent money on books, this was the most reasonable option."

"Right. I understand that, but why didn't you tell me? I have to hear this from some stranger?"

"Mom, he's not a stranger." 

"Honey, he's not a stranger to YOU. But he is to me."

"Mom! I'm sorry okay! I planned to tell you when I came here to attend Lane's wedding. Which is the day after tomorrow I might add! Can you just stop being so angry? It's not like I did something against the law. I didn't think not telling you would cause so much trouble. I'm sorry! It's not like I'm 6 years old anymore and need to ask you to get a lollipop, I should think I'm old enough to make my own decisions," Rory said. Tristan came over and placed a supporting arm around her shoulders. 

Lorelai was quite shocked. She had never seen Rory so indignant about anything. And she realised that she really did not have any right to get so worked up about a small thing such as this. At least Rory was fine and dandy. 

"Oh I forgot about that. You know what they say, once a daughter, always a daughter," laughed Lorelai. 

"Mum, you got the quote all wrong," smirked Rory. 

"Yeah? That's Ok, I don't mind," chuckled Lorelai.

Tristan spoke up. "Besides, you ARE the queen of Stars Hollow."

10 o'clock

Rory dressed up to meet Lane in her rented apartment in Hartford. Tristan was going to drive her there. 

"Rory, hurry up. Lane's probably there waiting," yelled Tristan. 

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Keep your pants on," said Rory as she walked out of her room.

Tristan smirked. "Mary, I was never intending to take my pants off. Unless you want me to of course, by which I would be very much obliged to do so."

Rory laughed. She liked the fact that he was back to his old self around her, flinging innuendoes and smirking. "Right. I don't really want to see your sorry white ass this early in the morning, so I'd advise you to keep them on. Where's mum?"

Tristan chuckled. Rory would never change… that much. "She's working in the Inn. Remember?"

"Of course I remember. Let's go now, slowcoach."

They got into his car, and he drove languidly. As they neared to Lane's pad, Rory started to freak out.

"Tristan," she whined. "What if things are really awkward between us two."

"Well, Mary. Then, I'll have to do something rash." 

"Tris, I said keep your pants on," chided Rory, although she found it hard to keep a straight face.

"Mary, Mary… I'm sure you'll be fine. You guys will have loads to catch up on. I'll pick you up in about 2 hours. How does that sound?" 

Rory was stricken. "You're not coming with me? Where are you going?"

Tristan was surprised. "Didn't I tell you that I'm going to pick up my suit at the laundry's?"

"Nooo, you did not tell me. By the way, thank you for telling me now."

Tristan smirked. "You're welcome, Mary."

He stopped in front of the building that housed Lane's apartments. 

"See you later, Mary," he said, and gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek. 

Rory smiled bravely. "See you." 

Rory walked up the stairs to apartment 2D, and knocked on the door. She heard a loud crash, and grinned. Lane was still Lane. The door opened. Lane was standing there. 

"Hi Lane." 


End file.
